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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 2926
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
6566H.02C JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o repeal section 537.600, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to
liability of private contractors.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 537.600, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu
2 thereof, to be known as section 537.600, to read as follows:
537.600. 1. Such sovereign or governmental tort immunity as existed at common law
2 in this state prior to September 12, 1977, except to the extent waived, abrogated or modified
3 by statutes in ef fect prior to that date, shall remain in full force and effect; except that, the
4 immunity of the public entity from liability and suit for compensatory damages for negligent
5 acts or omissions is hereby expressly waived in the following instances:
6 (1) Injuries directly resulting from the negligent acts or omissions by public
7 employees arising out of the operation of motor vehicles or motorized vehicles within the
8 course of their employment;
9 (2) Injuries caused by the condition of a public entity's property if the plaintif f
10 establishes that the property was in dangerous condition at the time of the injury , that the
11 injury directly resulted from the dangerous condition, that the dangerous condition created a
12 reasonably foreseeable risk of harm of the kind of injury which was incurred, and that either a
13 negligent or wrongful act or omission of an employee of the public entity within the course of
14 his employment created the dangerous condition or a public entity had actual or constructive
15 notice of the dangerous condition in suf ficient time prior to the injury to have taken measures
16 to protect against the dangerous condition. In any action under this subdivision wherein a
17 plaintif f alleges that he was damaged by the negligent, defective or dangerous design of a
18 highway or road, which was designed and constructed prior to September 12, 1977, the public
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
19 entity shall be entitled to a defense which shall be a complete bar to recovery whenever the
20 public entity can prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the alleged negligent,
21 defective, or dangerous design reasonably complied with highway and road design standards
22 generally accepted at the time the road or highway was designed and constructed.
23 2. The express waiver of sovereign immunity in the instances specified in
24 subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection 1 of this section are absolute waivers of sovereign
25 immunity in all cases within such situations whether or not the public entity was functioning
26 in a governmental or proprietary capacity and whether or not the public entity is covered by a
27 liability insurance for tort.
28 3. The term "public entity" as used in this section shall include any multistate
29 compact agency created by a compact formed between this state and any other state which has
30 been approved by the Congress of the United States.
31 4. When acting within the scope of a government contract awarded by the
32 Missouri department of transportation, private contractors, subcontractors, engineers,
33 or the employees ther eof performing work in accordance with the plans and
34 specifications appr oved by such department shall have sover eign or governmental
35 tort immunity to the same extent as the Missouri department of transportation,
36 including any limitation on awards for liability pr ovided under section 537.610.
37 5. A contractor or subcontractor shall not be liable for claims arising fro m the
38 design, condition, or maintenance of a transportation project occurring after execution
39 of the contract and prior to the commencement of physical construction activities on the
40 pr oject site.
41 6. During performance of physical construction activities, a contractor ,
42 subcontractor , or employee ther eof shall be deemed an agent of the state for purposes
43 of soverei gn or governmental tort immunity when performing work within the scope of
44 the contract and in material compliance with plans, specifications, or directives
45 appr oved by the Missouri department of transportation, applicable to the condition
46 alleged to have caused injury , and without authority to materially deviate fr om such
47 plans or dir ectives.
48 7. Upon acceptance of the pro ject, including partial acceptance, substantial
49 completion, or final acceptance by the Missouri department of transportation, liability
50 for the design, condition, maintenance, and performance of the completed pr oject shall
51 r est with the public entity , and the contractor or subcontractor shall not be liable for
52 claims arising ther eafter .
53 8. The immunity provi ded under this subsection shall not apply to negligent or
54 r eckless acts, failur e to materially comply with appr oved plans and specifications, or
55 acts or omissions outside the scope of the contract.
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56 9. Such immunity shall be subject to the exceptions otherwise set forth in this
57 section.
✔
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